Jinxed
by Melodious Nocturne Stalker
Summary: Bad luck always followed Roxas, and at times he found himself blaming the number 13. However, when things get a little more serious, how will he manage? [Akuroku] Chapter 6 is finally here!
1. Fake Emotions

**_Jinxed_**

_**Melodious Nocturne Stalker**_

**--- First ever fanfic. Critique, don't flame, because I can probably read over your own things and find the same mistakes/quality… If you have any, that is.**

**---Warning: Rated M for violence and language in later chapters. If you don't like it, don't read it. :D**

**---Pretending Roxas and Sora are split. Separate beings now, yes.**

**---Soriku and AkuRoku, possible Zemyx, no smexiness.**

**---Don't worry about the angst at the beginning. There's little of it.**

**---Disclaimer: I dun own Kingdom Hearts… Though I'd kill for it.**

**---Hope you enjoy my original characters, though only a couple are introduced in this. x3 I may have art for them later. E-mail me if you have ideas.**

**---If I get good reviews I'll add more chapters.**

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Morning; the time he hated most. His striking eyes glared angrily at the digital clock flashing the numbers '9:07'. Unlike normal wall clocks, digital ones didn't make the noises that give the air a sense of being in a still room. This room, however, had no noise, no movement, not a bit of life. Just like the person it withheld. Empty inside and out. Sure he could hide it with his antics and his mischievous grins, but that outer shell only covered up his hollow heart.

They all told him he was worthless to everyone, that he had no heart, no emotions, no possible attachments to the world. They told him his only purpose in being at all was to take over. They wanted him to shroud the universe in darkness, to make every last one of them empty shells… Everyone… empty husks of human beings who once were someone… They wanted him to take over with their own army of shells… Of darkness…

Of Nobodies…

Finally, to give the almost separate world of his room some reprieve from the still air that filled it, the young man moved. The black covers fell back slowly, and then were jerked over to release him. His room was cold, and he shuddered. It figured he would only be wearing tight black pants in the cool room. Flaming red hair fell about messily, the normally spiky and… 'perky' locks being a little messed up. Even the beautiful people got bed-head sometimes.

Usually dangerously vibrant emerald eyes were hazed from the morning he had yet to fully awaken from. He attempted to shuffle his way to the bathroom to clean up, but he could only make it to the foot of the bed before he sat back down and stared blankly at the floor a few feet in front of him. If the others were to see him like this, their hearts might sink. He may have been a pain in the ass to most of them, but he still put the personality in the deadweight castle, even if they all believed that personality was fake.

Axel grumbled something incoherent and shook his head, then stayed still as if breaking the silence of the early morning had been a crime. Once he'd realized his upper body was exposed and his hair was messy he stood up and went to the bathroom, fixing his hair, washing his face, and grabbing his coat from the towel rack next to his shower. He slipped it on, hesitating to zip it up. A quick glance into the mirror and he realized why he of all people would care if anyone saw him. Wasn't he the one who liked that? Wasn't he the one who was mischievous and perverted? He came to a reasonable conclusion. Keeping a body like his hidden… was torture to whomever he came across.

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We're all out in the open, just waiting to get hurt by the right person, and to fall for the wrong one

A younger blond boy walked down the empty corridors, toward his best friend's room. The entire building was still and lifeless as he walked through it. It was almost eerie. However, he was used to it. Eyes the color and depth of the deepest oceans scanned the doors until he found the correct one, a metal 'VIII' plastered on the entrance. He grabbed the doorknob without knocking, quietly sneaking into his room expecting to find him asleep. When he didn't, the confused boy walked to the doorway of his open bathroom, where he saw Axel in the mirror with his coat still half-unzipped.

Without thinking about the concept of mirrors, he leaned against the doorframe and smirked, eyeing the exposed skin. However, as stated before, this particular boy had forgotten something about mirrors.

_Gasp…! THWACK!_

"Ow, shit!!"

If you can see someone, they can see you.

"Jeez, why'd you have to hit me, Axel?" He whined, rubbing his head.

"Cause you walked into my room and started staring at me when I was in the bathroom, dipshit!"

"… Heheh… You were admiring yourself, eh?" He snickered, getting smacked again. "Ouch! Quit that!"

"It's too early for me to deal with… you," Axel growled, zipping up his coat. For some reason, when he wasn't deliberately showing it off, it bothered him to let his best friend see him slightly undressed. He sat down on the foot of his bead and rubbed his face, and the blond took a seat next to him.

"Wha's with you?" He asked, nudging him in the arm.

"Jus' tired is all…." Axel was silent for a moment before adding in reluctantly. "Sorry I snapped. It's just way too early."

The blue-eyed boy smirked, tangling his fingers in the pyre's hair and shoving his head to the side, causing the older boy to smile. "You're such a sap in the morning."

"Thanks, Roxas," Axel praised sarcastically.

It was always nice to have friends like that…

Roxas stood up, extending his hand out to his friend and smirking. "C'mon, let's go entertain ourselves. I'm sure there's someone up to bother… I walked past Demyx's room and I didn't hear any snoring, so I'm sure he's around somewhere... Err, Axel?"

The red-haired boy was looking at the hand held out to him, thinking of how anyone else would react. He smiled, knowing in the back and front of his mind that even if the world were ending, this hand would always be reaching to him, there to help. He was glad for friends like Roxas. He shook his head, knowing that if he spaced for much longer that hand would come in harsh contact with his face. He grabbed it, standing up and grinning his usual grin at the younger boy. "… Let's go."

"Eh… alright…" Roxas was unsure of Axel's actions this morning. He was acting less hyperactive than usual. Perhaps it truly was the fact that he'd just woken up. _Well, I guess I'll see throughout the day… I mean, s'not like I have anything better to do than hang around him all day. Not that it isn't interesting..._ He thought to himself as Axel pushed open his door quite quickly.

_BAM!!_

Roxas jumped, taken aback by the noise, but Axel stayed calm as he looked behind the door and snickered. "Well, there he is…" He sneered.

"Augh… That _hurt_… Son of a—" The sandy-haired boy cut himself off, seeing Axel and, after a moment, Roxas' head poking out from behind him. He rubbed his head, standing up and glaring at them.

Roxas smiled, pointing at him. "You've gotta watch where you're goin', Demyx. You know brain cells don't regenerate, right?" He jeered.

Axel scoffed. "Too many more injuries like that an' you'll have none left, kid."

Demyx growled. "I'm not a kid…"

Axel snickered again. "You're younger than me, you're a kid to me," He stated plainly, shrugging as he left the room and pushed Roxas slightly out of the doorway as he closed off entrance to his room.

Demyx cocked an eyebrow bravely, or at least as bravely as he could. "What were you two doin' in there all alone, eh? Axel, you look pretty tired, and your bangs are wet… Heheh." He joked. It was true that Axel's bangs were wet from when he washed his face, but the innuendo was too apparent, which earned Demyx another head injury. "Ack— Ouch!"

The injured hydromaniac was fortunate to catch a glimpse of pink invading Axel's face before he turned away. He was actually blushing. Demyx had hit something for once, which astounded him. Normally he'd just get hit and would continue going, but this time… a different reaction. Perhaps he actually thought about that sometimes? Imagining Axel daydreaming about his best friend amused the Melodious Nocturne to no end. But he would leave the subject alone for now. At the moment, he would just join his two friends, and they would torture the other Organization members.

Or, so he thought…

Just then, a familiar voice was heard over a speaker that seemed invisible. Their Superior was addressing them. "Everyone, report to my quarters immediately. I have a most delightful surprise for you all."

"Ah great… That's not gonna be good… Probably," Axel complained.

"Well, we'd better go," Roxas suggested. A portal opened behind him, and Demyx entered it, followed by Axel, then Roxas. They appeared seemingly last in front of Xemnas's door. Everyone else was present already, and the trio gained glances from everyone as they all anticipated Xemnas's entrance.

The door handle clacked, and everyone's attention turned to the entrance of their Superior's room. The door swung open, Xemnas walking out and smiling a little oddly to everyone. He actually seemed excited, or as close as a Nobody could get to it. "Thank you all for coming. I have gathered you all here to show you a new room…" A portal opened up in his doorway. "This way… to the new Auditorium,"

He directed them all into the portal, the twelve lower members walking through in a line to find themselves in the back of a large room painted a deep blue with several white or black tables. A grand stage covered the majority of the room, a microphone in the middle of it near the edge.

Everyone seemed impressed, but none were as excited as Demyx, who gazed starry-eyed at the stage. His mind was going wild with visions of himself performing on that stage, and people actually respecting his abilities. (A/N: Corny, eh?) His daydreaming was cut off by a familiar voice. Zexion was getting his turn to speak. "… Superior… Why are there so many tables for just thirteen of us? These tables fit about six people or so, and there are… fifteen of them… Why so many?"

A low chuckle was heard from the superior. "Ah, but are there really only thirteen of us?" He asked, keeping a little cryptic tone to his words.

"… Huh?" Axel asked in a monotonous tone. Roxas sweatdropped and sighed.

On purposeful cue, another portal opened up on stage. Everyone jumped—who else could possible generate a portal other than themselves!? A cloaked form stepped out, followed by a smaller brunet boy they all recognized. Almost instantly, eleven of the thirteen members called their weapons. Only Roxas and Xemnas remained unarmed.

"… Sora…?" Roxas' voice was a little louder than he had thought.

The intensely blue-eyed boy smiled his usual charming smile and waved. "Heheh… Guilty as charged."

Axel glanced at his best friend, noticing that his weapons weren't out. His chakrams disappeared, and he let his guard down for the most part. Demyx caught sight of this and did the same. A few other members saw this and the fact that Xemnas seemed fine with them being there, and followed suit. The rest took a moment before doing so.

The cloaked figure in front of Sora pulled his hood back, revealing long silver hair and aquamarine eyes. He raised one arm and put his elbow on Sora's shoulder. He smiled. "Thanks for the warm welcome."

"Where are the others, Riku…?" Xemnas asked with a hint of curiosity in his voice.

"Oh, they're coming… Only a few of them think they're ready to be officially accepted, though. The rest of 'em will stay under my care until it's time," Riku explained. Everyone in the crowd seemed confused. What were they talking about…? Just then, five more portals opened up.

"Ah, here they are… The first of the new recruits," Xemnas said. Larxene gasped, several of the male members muttered something under their breath or cocked an eyebrow. Demyx stared at Xemnas dumbfounded, and the rest of them stared at the portals with anticipation.

They came out one by one. The first cloaked figure moved forward through his portal, weapon in hand—It looked to be a length of thread connected to a ring, though it sparked madly with electricity as the figure showed it off. They controlled the wire with their opposite hand, putting it over the hand with the ring and coaxing out the wire without touching it. They then reached down low, the wire sparking as it followed. The hand with the ring moved down as well, meeting wrist-to-wrist with the other hand.

In a swift and sudden movement, the Nobody, who would be called number XIV from now on, began to spin, causing their cape to bellow out. Slowly, as they spun, their hands moved out and up to create a sort of electrifying metal shield around them. They then quickly unraveled the wire, which removed one layer going down, then the second layer going back up the edge of the barrier to reveal that his hood was now back, revealing his face.

A grin was on his face, much like the ones that Axel would give when he was acting cool or being obnoxious. His shoulder-length hair was a mixture of blond and black, so much so that people wouldn't be able to tell which was his natural color. His eyes were almost a fuchsia color, though a little darker. He had a black marking on the outside of each eye, though his bangs covered them mostly. His ears were pierced, a golden stud in each one.

Xemnas spoke to him. "State your name," He said in an ominous tone.

The boy bent over in a bow. "Eryx."

Xemnas smirked. "You may step down, Number XIV."

Appreciating his new title, the boy walked to the edge of the stage and jumped down. He walked over to the tables, grabbing the back of a chair and pinning it around so it's back faced the stage. He then sat on in backwards, crossing his arms and looking at the next portal.

A particularly thin figure walked out onto the stage next, obviously a girl. Eryx smirked as he looked her form up and down. Axel glanced at her, but oddly enough, he didn't find her attractive. If he weren't being slightly polite, he'd have voiced his thoughts_. I get more of a feeling when I look at…_ He finished his sentence with a mental picture of his best friend instead of words.

The girl put her hand out just as Sora or Roxas would, and both of the boys found themselves doing it with her. Simultaneously, all three of their weapons appeared. The girl was now holding a sickle-blade seemingly made of bronze. She pointed it toward Eryx, who stood up and bowed. He jumped up onto the stage and stood several feet away from the girl, creating a barrier with his wire once again, though he made it thin.

The girl pointed her sickle at him again, and a small tornado started at the end of her blade, growing until it engulfed it entirely. The wind suddenly burst out and slammed into the barrier, which didn't last very lone. Eryx did his best to keep it up, but he couldn't under the pressure of the attack. It broke, unraveling into the ring and sending the boy flying backward into the crowd—on top of Demyx, no less.

Xemnas soon found himself clapping at the display. "Wonderful… State your name, number XV."

She was silent for a moment, and then lifted her hands to pull her hood off. She had pale skin, very pale blue eyes, and white hair down to her mid-back. "… Xylia." Her voice was clear, and seemed to melt several of the male members around—Roxas and Demyx included.

But again, Axel didn't seem fazed. He was beginning to get worried about his own behavior. It just wasn't quite right that he could look at this girl, imagine her in several outfits and lack thereof, and not feel a thing. And yet, when his emerald gaze fell upon his friends, it angered him that Roxas would be gawking at her like he was. It didn't bother him that Demyx would stare; in fact he couldn't have cared less. But when the sapphire-eyed blond couldn't keep his eyes off of her, the Pyre felt strangely disturbed and angered. Could this have been jealousy…?

"You may step down. Welcome to the Organization." She bowed lightly, and then walked down to sit at a table by herself in the corner. Roxas stepped to a nearby table that was close to Xylia's. Demyx followed suit, and Axel trailed nonchalantly after, seating himself next to Roxas and nudging him as the next new member came through the third portal.

"Pay attention," His voice sounded a bit harsh.

"Ow…" Roxas rubbed his arm and pouted, glancing over at Xylia once more before he shot a glare at Axel. He whispered his complaint. "That _hurt_. Why are you acting so strange today?" He snapped.

"Cause I feel like it, alright?" Axel's gaze locked onto Roxas' eyes, his dangerously flashing eyes telling him to stop, but also conveying another message to him. To Roxas, they screamed 'help me'. His body felt a little heavy suddenly, and he decided to watch the next member arrive. He'd bother Axel about it later.

This guy seemed older. He looked at least 20, having come out without his hood on. He was easy on the eyes, not seeming very manly, but not girlish either. He was skinny, seemed to have a little muscle, and his already-visible weapon looked to be a fiddle. He put it to his chin, his chest-length, straight as a board ebony hair falling forward a bit as he leaned down. He began to play, a familiar yet foreign tune.

A Heartless appeared, a NEOShadow at that. It moved jerkily as usual, but to an invisible beat. Suddenly, the music changed to a strange and dark tune, and the NEOShadow began to jerk about uneasily before in exploded into black mist.

For some reason, Larxene seemed interested in this little act, and began clapping slowly. Xemnas broke in with his voice.

"Ahem. Your name, Number XVI."

A calm, majestic voice even more commanding than Xemnas's came over the crowd. "Maxwell," He stated.

Xemnas seemed intimidated by his voice, and motioned for him to sit instead of instigating any more speech from him. Maxwell complied and walked down a set of side stairs to a table opposite the room from Xylia's. He tipped his chair back and set his feet up on the tabletop as he watched the fourth out of the five portals.

He, Xylia, and Eryx knew this next one would be fun to watch. The next person stepped through—a small boy, seeming to be a child. Indeed he was, as everyone could tell when he removed his hood. His deep crimson eyes had a depressed look to them. Long pale-orange hair hung over his face, the majority of it braided in back. He looked nervous and upset at the same time, though calm as well. His small frame turned to look at Riku, who nodded. He was about to start his demonstration of powers when a certain 'rock star' interrupted.

"A… _kid?!_" He stated, seemingly shocked by this. "How does a kid get into the Organization?"

Riku glared at him from on stage. "Come up here and find out."

Demyx, being dense now and then, stood up and walked up onto the stage, crossing his arms and cocking an eyebrow at the kid. "Well? Show me."

The child looked up at him, just staring, seeming to delve into the depths of the hydromaniac's mind. After a moment, the room darkened, and the tables began to shake. The floor trembled, causing the microphone on stage to fall over. The high-pitched screech of the protesting electronic device only heightened the fear being struck into Demyx. He was already easily spooked, but this was more than he'd ever witnessed before. He would have run, but he felt that his feet were cemented into place. His entire body had turned to stone, it seemed.

Suddenly, a burst of what seemed to be mist erupted from the floor, a closer look at the phenomena telling the other members that it was not mist, but rather spirits. Roxas jumped, axel flinched, and a couple of the other members lost their balance and fell. Zexion, being among them, had to grab onto a table to keep himself from hitting the floor. Among the hundreds of souls, one stopped as it came into view. All of the others disappeared, and the single apparition jerked towards Demyx, entering his body.

The sandy-haired boy fell to his knees, hugging his stomach and screaming as the spirit took hold of him. Roxas had to cover his ears, as did several others, for his cries of pain were almost too much to bear. Once the horrific screeches of the musician had ceased, he stood, as if nothing had happened. He opened his eyes, revealing that they were lifeless and empty.

The child held out his hand, making a grabbing motion with his hands and then yanking backward. The life sprang back into Demyx's eyes and he fell to the floor, unconscious for only a few moments. He lifted himself until he was on his hands and knees, and then sat up. He looked at the kid in front of him, standing up and backing away slightly before throwing himself off of the edge of the stage, landing on his feet and going to sit at a table in the corner by himself.

Xemnas smirked and began to clap, as did the other members who weren't horrified by the performance (ex. Säix, Marluxia, Xigbar). Axel closed his eyes, concentrating on getting the sound of that screech out of his head. The Superior spoke. "Your name?"

The child was silent.

"Your name, Number XVII," Xemnas demanded in an annoyed tone.

Sora broke in. "His name is Dusan, but he goes by Phoenix."

Xemnas eyed the brunet dangerously, causing him to glare back until Riku put his hand on his head. "… Very well. Step down." The child obeyed immediately, seating himself at a table away from everyone else.

"One more…" Roxas mumbled under his breath, loud enough that Axel could hear. He glanced at him, catching the blue eyes watching him.

"… What?" He asked, scowling at him.

Roxas lowered his head, crossing his arms and laying his head down as he continued to stare at him. His gaze switched from emerald eye to emerald eye, and back again. "… Nothin'…" He kept staring at him, and neither of them broke the look until the sound of footsteps on the stage caught their attention.

The air about this one was different, as many noticed. Their attention seemed to be focused solely on him, and he seemed to like it. His hood was already back, revealing short-cut dirty blond hair with bangs that hung down just past his jaw. He had brown eyes, and overall looked normal. He raised a hand, giving a thumbs-up to everyone and making his introduction without even being asked. He winked before he spoke. " Hey there—My name's Xanthus."

A couple of the crowd members, Eryx, Roxas, Axel, and Larxene included, began to snicker. This kid had personality—or at least a better mask than the majority of them.

Xanthus raised his hand, a keyboard in the shape of a strand of DNA appearing. (I hope know your biology, kids!) The strands on the ends were where the keys were, the strands in between and holding it together being metal. Sora reached behind him, grabbing several cinder blocks and setting them up in a line, one behind the other so that they made a thick wall. He then retreated back to Riku, where he leaned against him. Riku reacted by putting an arm around his shoulder.

Xanthus held his hand out above the keyboard, smirking and staring at the cinder blocks. A very fast, upbeat tune began to play on the keys, a white line of energy accumulating in the middle of the keyboard. Once the energy had gathered enough, he let it shoot out at the cinder blocks, destroying one after another as it cut through them like butter. It disappeared at the end of the line.

Xemnas, already knowing his name, simply smirked. "Interesting, Number XVIII. You may all go to your rooms, which, by now, ought to be prepared. Everyone is dismissed." He looked about at the crowd as they all emptied out, Demyx having discovered a side door and taking that instead. He needed to walk off his experience.

Roxas watched Xylia as she passed by, not taking his eyes off of her until she had left. Axel followed his gaze, and then, feeling annoyed and distressed at the same time, shoved past him and walked through a portal that appeared in front of him. Before Roxas could catch him, it disappeared. He didn't quite know how to react to the sudden hostility, but he was about to go back to his room when he was stopped by Xemnas's voice.

"Roxas! Come here, I need to tell you something." Roxas obeyed. Xemnas looked at him sternly. "You and Axel are being assigned to train the new members later this afternoon. They've had training in developing their abilities, but not in actual combat. I need you to inform Axel, I have business to take care of. These are only the first of several members-in-training that will be joining us over the next few months, and there are things that need to be done before they arrive." Roxas nodded, opening a portal and walking though it. Xemnas smirked to himself.

"… Just wait till you realize it, boys…"

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**Hope you enjoyed this. O I'll be adding more if the reviews are sufficient! And don't worry, there will be no pairings with my Original Characters and the Original Organization members or any other characters I don't own.**


	2. Practice

'Tis me again, saying that I'm just screwing what I said before and writing more! I've gotten enough whining from my friends that official reviews are mattering less to me now. Thanks to those who did bother to review, though. :3 I hope you liked it. xD; Anyhow, it's time to get started!

Enjoy chapter two 

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Roxas walked out of the portal that took him to Axel's door. He hesitated, wondering if he should knock. Axel seemed pretty upset, but he didn't know if it would make him angrier to barge in. He closed his eyes, lifting his hand and knocking lightly on the door. Silence. He started to doubt that Axel was there, but then realized that with his recent behavior, anything was possible.

"Axel… I know you're there…" Still silence. He sighed. "I'm coming in…" Silence again. If he was there, he didn't have anything to protest about Roxas entering his room. The blond grabbed the handle of the door, pushing it open slightly and looking in. He opened the door all the way, looking around and seeing no one. The bathroom light was on, however. He slipped in, leaving the door open, and headed for the bathroom.

A quiet _click_ caused Roxas to jump and turn around, noticing in the dimly lit room a dark figure with seemingly glowing emerald eyes. "… Axel…" His hand was on the door—he had been waiting for him to show up the whole time. Roxas's muscles were tense from being startled, but for some reason he couldn't relax them. The air felt so heavy he could barely breathe, let alone move…. Axel was just not happy.

The redhead closed his eyes and moved toward the blue-eyed blond, seeming less intimidating but more frightening in the dark. Then he stepped into the light, which cast shadows over his face in ways that depicted his current depression and anger, or at least as close as Nobodies could get…. He walked till he was almost next to Roxas, then opened his eyes and gave a half-lidded distant look to his friend. "… What do you want?" He asked, his voice a cold monotone.

Roxas opened his mouth to try to speak, but he couldn't. It was almost as if he were talking to a complete stranger, and an angry one at that. What had happened to the friend he was so used to? He caught himself every time he thought about saying he 'cared' about him. Nobodies couldn't care. At least that's what they always told him. That's what they told everyone… But then what was wrong with Axel. If he couldn't feel, he couldn't be upset.

It was then that it hit him exactly who he was talking to, or attempting to speak with. It was Axel. It was his friend—no, his _best_ friend. They could talk about anything, even, or especially, when they were upset. He shook his head. "Sorry for coming in without permission…" The pyre didn't move. "… Axel, what's wrong? You've been acting so strange lately… And you were deliberately hurting me earlier. What's the matter? Did I do something? I'm sorry if I did, but I want to know if I made you mad--" Axel put two fingers over his mouth.

"Shut up." He said coldly, grabbing his coat at his shoulder and pulling him slightly to get him to follow. He went to sit down on the bed, and Roxas followed, though he didn't seat himself.

"… So, what is it…?" The blond asked calmly.

"That's what I'm wondering…" Axel replied in a low tone.

Here Roxas decided to take a seat next to Axel. He put a hand on his shoulder. "What's different to you…?" He questioned, giving the redhead a starting point to explain himself from.

"… I think I'm more confused than anything. Confused at why this is happening. I feel kinda strange—like I have something in my chest that hurts and feels like it's going to explode. Whenever I feel like that my mind starts going off, too."

Roxas dared to ask what Axel hoped he wouldn't. "What sets that off?" He asked.

"… Eh, it's nothing," Axel shook his head and looked away, a very light shade of rosy color flitting across his face for but a moment, though Roxas caught it.

"… You're lying. You're supposed to be good at lying, but you're not fooling me today. It's not nothing, what is it?" He asked, leaning over so he could see his face better.

"… That new girl."

"W-what about her?" Roxas asked, blushing a bit as well as he thought of her.

Axel looked at him, feeling it again. "… That," He said, getting up and walking toward the door. He didn't get far before he was stopped.

Roxas had a hold on his arm now. "Hey! Wait a second, Axel… Are you saying it bothers you that _I_ think she's pretty?!" No response—Axel's easiest way of saying 'yes' without actually speaking. "Why would that bother you…?"

Axel shook his head again, this time more violently. "I don't know!" He yelled, frustration taking over.

Roxas reacted badly, confused at this as well. "Just because I stare at someone for a few seconds, you flip?!"

"Yeah, I guess I do!" Axel retorted, yanking his arm out of Roxas's grip and turning to him, eyes flashing dangerously.

"It's not like I really like her, Axel…." Roxas said a little more calmly.

"Then stop _gawking_ at her!!" He shouted, the emotions that were supposedly fake going out of control. "It pisses me off to have you looking at someone--!!" He cut himself off before he said too much, blushing vibrantly as he turned away and began to walk. Roxas reached out to him, touching his shoulder and gaining a violent, but expected, reaction as the emerald-eyed redhead roughly knocked his hand back and turned around. "What the hell do y—" His shouting was cut short, Roxas wrapping his arms around him in an embrace.

Roxas buried his face in Axel's chest. "I don't like her, Axel. I'll never like her. Alright…?" He looked up at him, loosening his grip on the redhead's coat. Axel was looking away, though Roxas could see the opaque red covering his face and the nervous expression his eyes so easily made apparent.

"… O-ok…" Roxas released him, looking down. Axel noticed this. "… W-what?"

"You aren't gonna like the news I've got, Axel…"

The redhead eyed the teen, seeing that he was approaching this new topic in a friendlier manner. "What is it…?" Axel asked in a complaining and already regretful tone as if nothing had just happened.

"Xemnas appointed the two of us to training the new guys… This afternoon." He glanced up at him sheepishly, grinning innocently.

Axel couldn't be mad at him with the face he was putting on, obviously for that exact purpose. "… Ah, shit… Oh well, better relax while we can." He sighed, though the feelings he had been getting were still bothering both of the boys. He turned around, moving toward the door as Roxas stopped him with his voice.

"Axel…?"

The older boy glanced over his shoulder. "Yeah?"

"Nobodies don't have emotions, right…?" He questioned uneasily.

Axel thought about it for a moment before he struck gold in his own mind. The words he spoke were directed not only at Roxas, but also to himself and all other Nobodies. "I wouldn't say that… I'm not one hundred percent sure if we have hearts, but ask yourself this—do they control our emotions…? It takes a heart to be living, but it takes a _soul_ to be alive. At least that's what I believe." And with that, he grinned his mischievous grin that gave Roxas a bit of piece of mind. It meant that Axel was really okay now. And not only that, but he seemed to believe a more positive side of how the Nobodies' worked. A side no one else had been able to see before…

And Roxas was glad for that.

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Afternoon.

The new members were all scattered in yet another new room Xemnas had created. It was almost a separate world, an island floating in the air above the castle with its own climate and weather. Today, it was sunny and a very neutral, comfortable temperature. There was very little wind to throw off anyone's aim or balance. Perfect for training.

Eryx was leaning against a large rock, which Xylia sat atop. A tree sat several feet away, and Phoenix had seated himself in the shade, where he hugged his knees and watched the others converse. Xanthus was walking about, jumping atop and medium to large sized rocks and climbing any trees that were near the group as he talked to Eryx and Xylia. Maxwell threw in his own comment here and there, but spent most his time waiting playing his fiddle and destroying random objects.

The two teachers for the day stepped out of a portal that appeared in the middle of the group of students. Just as they stepped out, Xanthus dropped down from a tree in front of them. "Hey!" He chirped. Axel smirked.

"'Ey," He replied, shaking his head. "C'mon, everyone. Lets get started." The 5 of them all got up from where they were and assembled in a small clutter in front of the two of them. Just as Axel was about to start, he caught sight of a portal opening. He watched to see Sora and Riku exit from it. Roxas followed his friend's gaze to below the tree Phoenix was at to see them. Axel called out to them. "Hey… What're you guys doin out here…?"

"Your Superior asked me to be here," Riku answered. "Sora came along if that's quite alright."

Axel hesitated, and then nodded his head. He still wasn't sure of what was going on with the two of them being around so much. He'd have to ask Xemnas. Riku and Sora walked forward, sitting down on the rock Xylia was on before. Sora smiled at them all, and several of them smiled back, though less sweetly than he did. Even Roxas caught himself giving Sora a kind face.

Axel proceeded with the lesson after giving an appreciative nod in Riku's direction, which was returned in an opposite manner, the silver haired boy tilting his head back rather than forward. "So… I've been informed that you haven't had any training in serious combat." They exchanged glances with each other, Eryx, Maxwell, and Xanthus nodding in response. Axel eyed Phoenix and Xylia for reactions, but after finding none, glanced at Xylia once more before continuing.

"You guys ready to use your skills?" Roxas said, knowing he was a teacher in this as well. They all nodded this time except for Phoenix, Xanthus and Eryx seeming to by very anxious to 'play' with some enemies. Roxas looked at Axel, who looked back at him. They nodded simultaneously, and called forth a large group of Heartless (A/N: Think the amount of them in Destiny Islands at the beginning of Kingdom Hearts 1).

Roxas started. "Ready." 

Axel continued. "Set."

They finished together, the two of them thrusting their outside arms forward and sending the enemies at them. "Go!!"

Once the first few managed to occupy the first four members, they seemed to slip past and congregate around Phoenix. As they closed in, he just watched. The mass of them converged onto him, and he stayed still. Axel and Roxas jumped, both moving to stop them from killing the boy before an arm flew out in front of them.

Axel glared at Riku. "What're you doing, idiot?! They're gonna kill him!" Riku put a finger to his mouth and slowly looked to the pile of darkness the young boy was enveloped in. Roxas and Axel followed his gaze.

The last few remaining enemies slipped away from their targets to join the writhing heap of Heartless. The four other members watched them, and then saw what was happening to Phoenix. However, none of them moved. The lowered their weapons and waited. Roxas and Axel were confused.

An odd dark grayish spark flew from the mountain of black, then another, and another, until it was continuous. Suddenly, in an explosion of gray flames, the Heartless turned to smoke and died. All that was left was the child, standing in the same position as before, the same look on his face—the only thing different was that he was surrounded by ash-colored flames that slowly died out.

Axel and Roxas weren't confused anymore…. Roxas turned to his friend. "… Um… He seems to know enough about this…"

"Indeed… Shall we let him sit the rest of it out?" He asked quietly.

"Yes, because the next lesson was gonna be them fighting _us._"

"… Good point." He nodded, getting a little louder. "Phoenix. You may sit the rest of the lesson out for today. You seem to be beyond our help at this point in time." The child moved to the tree once again and sat down, hugging his knees and watching as they continued their lessons.

Eryx spoke up. "That would be a good idea to try again when Phoenix isn't around. He attracts the darkness," He explained without really going into detail. He flipped his hair back. "Besides, those were a bit too… _weak._" His tone was cocky, which made Axel twitch. Roxas nudged him though, so he released the anger with a sigh and the clearing of his throat. "So, teach. What's next?"

Axel and Roxas again exchanged glances and nods. Then Axel looked at Eryx and grinned the same grin Eryx had when he'd entered, except something was noticeably different.

Axel was better at it.

Roxas reached forward with both hands, closing his eyes for a moment while the members watched. He then slowly opened them again, tossing them a little smirk before his two keyblades appeared.

Axel reached out and arched his back forward slightly. He spread his legs a little, putting one foot a little farther back than the other. His head lowered slightly as he grinned his signature toothy grin. In a burst of flames on each hand, his chakrams appeared. "We're your next targets, buddy. On your mark… Get set…" He paused to look at his friend, who nodded to him.

They finished in unison once again.

"Go!!"

Eryx immediately shot his wire from his ring, wrapping it around one of Axel's chakrams, giving him a bit of a shock as the younger fuchsia-eyed boy whipped him into the air. The redhead worked through it, though. He grabbed hold of the wire as he held onto his chakrams at the same time, knowing he was already being shocked so it didn't much matter. He yanked on it in mid-swing, pulling himself to the boy and kicking him in the chest. He fell back, losing his grip on the pyre's weapon.

Axel landed on his knees, leaning forward and breathing heavily. The shock was quite an injury to him. As he looked up, the same length of wire was being thrown at him again. He moved out of the way for the most part, but it cut his cheek. And caused him to bleed. He had to admit, the kid had been trained well.

Not well enough, however.

Axel didn't need to be as close to Eryx as the younger boy thought. He made a swiping motion with his chakrams, sending a wall of flames at him that collided head-on, forcing the now burnt kid back to hit the rock he'd been leaning against before. He fell to the ground, deciding he didn't want to be too sore for tomorrow's practice so he didn't get back up.

Riku clapped sarcastically at the performance. "I think you've worn him out enough for today. You've done well, but there's plenty more time to practice. Let's call it a day since you guys were called up to do this on such short notice." Axel nodded, opening a portal and motioning for Roxas to follow.

The two of them disappeared from the new training island and reappeared in front of Axel's room again. The older teen opened the door, moving toward his bed and falling down face-first on it. It was then that he realized he was bleeding pretty badly. His cheek began to sting as he sat back up, covering it for a second and pulling it back as he winced.

Roxas sighed, walking toward Axel's bathroom. "Stay there, idiot." Axel laughed a little bit as he continued to mess with the wound and make it hurt even more, letting out a small ouch every once in a while. The blond boy rummaged through the medicine cabinet in Axel's bathroom until he managed to find the right stuff for treating the wound.

He walked out with a wet cotton ball, a patch to cover it with, and some disinfectant. He sat down, pulling Axel's hand away from the wound as he winced again. "Ack—Ow…"

Roxas resisted the urge to smack him. "Dork, quite messing with it and it won't hurt as much." He touched the icy wet ball of fluff to the cut, causing Axel to pull away and wince.

"Ow! Is there soap on that?" He complained, leaning away from Roxas as he asked.

"Yes. Now, let me clean it up, stupid." He leaned forward, reaching to attempt to swab it again. The moment he touched the wound, Axel pulled further away, and kept doing so until he had to prop himself up with his arm and Roxas had to sit on his knees. The blond kept trying, but Axel pulled back again and again. Soon enough, Roxas gave up and leaned back, crossing his arms.

After a moment without movement, Axel sat back up slowly, eyeing his friend. "You are such a baby, Axel," The blue-eyed boy sighed, shaking his head. This annoyed Axel.

"Hey, look who's talking mister—" Axel was cut off by the battle of cry of Roxas as he tackled him down and sat on top of him so that he couldn't move. The diversion had worked. Roxas snickered.

"For being the one who usually manipulates me and Demyx, you're pretty easy to mess with if you hit the right buttons." He jested, putting his free hand on Axel's head to make sure he didn't move when he touched the wound with the cotton. The pyre hissed in protest as the slice across his cheek was cleaned up in a most obnoxiously painful way.

As soon as it was cleaned and patched up, Roxas started to get up. The moment he had the chance, Axel threw the younger boy off and onto his back on the bed. He jumped on top of him and started running his fingers across the boy's ticklish spots, causing him to flail and scream. Axel was getting his revenge.

However, it's all fun and games till someone gets their coat accidentally unzipped.

As the redhead continued to hit the younger boy's ticklish areas, Roxas accidentally got his sleeve caught on the upper zipper on Axel's coat. The younger boy continued to thrash about as he laughed and screamed underneath his friend, and ended up pulling the zipper down.

Axel noticed this. In fact, his reaction was to stop, blush, and stare at Roxas in the position they were in. The blue-eyed blond blushed as well. (A/N: Aw, what a cute moment. :3 NOT FOR LONG)

The door opened, and the familiar voice of Demyx caused the two friends to turn and look at him. "Axel, Xemnas wanted to congratulate—_HOLY SHIT!"_ Demyx didn't know what had just happened. All he saw was Axel, blushing, with his coat unzipped on top of Roxas who was also blushing _and_ breathing heavily (From laughing). He turned around, shut the door, and ran away.

This occurrence made the boys realize their own positions, causing them to scramble up off the bed on opposite sides and look away from each other and blush even more. Roxas cleared his throat and looked up at the ceiling while Axel zipped his coat back up. They both sat down on the edge of the bed simultaneously, and a long awkward silence followed.

A few more moments passed before either of them spoke. Axel was too frozen with embarrassment and something else he couldn't quite place his finger on, but Roxas was a little less freaked, so he opened his mouth to speak. Just then, a voice was heard throughout the halls. Xemnas was calling them again.

"I just wanted to inform you all to get out your casual clothes and get changed. A party welcoming the new recruits will be held in the auditorium—No uniforms required. You all have an hour to get ready."

Roxas couldn't speak now. He couldn't look at Axel, and Axel couldn't look at Roxas. Neither one of them wanted to move, but Roxas had to get ready. A portal appeared, enveloping the blond and causing him to disappear. Axel let out a sigh of relief as he moved to get ready.

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**NEXT TIME!:**

**The party begins! What will we come across in our lively event? Danger, foreboding ominous feelings, and surprising entertainment!**

**Hope you enjoyed, stay tuned in for Chapter 3!**

**Melodious Nocturne Stalker**


	3. Death's Party

**Comments: S'me 'gain, what's up? It's nearly midnight as I'm starting this, 1-6-7, and I won't be done with this for a few days… I guess I'll add little updates in here to keep you all informed:3**

**Final update (And only one): It's 1-29-07, and I'm finally done! It's a short one, it is….**

**Disclaimer: As stated in chapter 1, I don't own any of the characters other than my 5 originals, and technically, Xanthus is only half-mine. After all, he's based off of this fic's rabid fan boy—actually, he's probably the reason the poor boy IS a rabid fan boy. Thanks for the support, Mike. XD**

**Read and Review, please. ;; I may not stop writing for the lack of reviews, but it's still saddening… Thanks to Bit for reviewing, though. 3**

**All right, it's time to get this party started!! (P.S.: HAPPY BIRTHDAY HYDE!)**

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Party time.

A portal opened in front of the open doors of the Auditorium, a figure walking through and gaining the temporary attention of the few people standing near the entrance to the dimly lit room. Music could be heard from inside, and a few of the members were dancing. The blond looked about into the dark, spotting everyone except Eryx, Maxwell, Xylia, Xanthus and Demyx. He wasn't worried about the new boys, but he wondered about Xylia and began to hope that Demyx wasn't locked in his room refusing to come out.

After a moment's thought about what had occurred earlier, he decided to turn his attention to something else in the room and away from the missing Xylia. He glanced around, spotting a flash of bright red behind a table. As he looked a little closer, he saw that this was the top of Axel's head. The older teen must have been reaching down for something, because in a moment he stood up straight and started staring off into space.

The blond moved toward the older boy, sneaking up behind him and poking him in the shoulder. Axel turned around jerkily only to freeze and turn the color of his hair. He examined the outfit Roxas was wearing. Oh so rarely did he get to see the boy in anything but the coat he was made to wear. And now was a real treat. A white, button-up shirt clung to his back, squaring at the shoulders slightly, the first button undone. A simple pair of khaki-colored jeans hugged his legs just right. All of this perfectly accented his light-pink cheeks and innocent smile.

As Roxas looked at Axel, he saw nothing short of awe striking upon the boy's frame. The redhead was dressed in a black jacket over a dark red tank-top-like shirt. He was wearing particularly baggy black cargo pants. However, everything fit his style. His eyes were brought out even more by the red shirt. He smirked, leaning on the table and speaking, since Axel obviously wasn't going to first.

"So, how's the party so far?" He asked, not exactly knowing where to start. The pyre spoke up.

"Eh, I-it's okay. Nothing's been happening, really."

As if on cue, the lights went completely off. Someone in the crowd screamed suddenly, but only for a second. A small light began to grow, seemingly in a line, moving in no set pattern, but in an entrancing way. Roxas had an idea what it was, and so did Axel. More than anything, it looked like a wire.

"Eryx…" They both muttered under their breath simultaneously. The boy on stage seemed to hear them, retracting the wire almost completely, then shooting it out at the crowd. It went over a few heads, but didn't touch anyone. They flinched and/or moved out of the way anyhow. And suddenly, the wire came back to the stage again, moving in that circle as it had when Eryx had first been introduced to everyone. It was an exact remake of the routine he'd put on earlier that day, but in the dark.

The barrier caused the room to light up somewhat, showing the figures of four others on the stage behind him. A bit of movement was seen with the one closest to the front. A soft melody began to come over the room, joined by the sound of background instruments. A drumbeat was slowly added, though it was light and slow. Lastly, the noise of a fiddle came out. The lights began to turn back on, and the wires holding Eryx suddenly burst out, retracting to a hand that was armed with a microphone.

The beat picked up, Eryx closing his eyes as he smirked, tapping his foot and bobbing his head along with it. The lights were on now, revealing Demyx playing his beloved sitar, Maxwell on his fiddle, Xanthus playing his keyboard and creating the sound of several instruments. Surprisingly, the one playing the drums was none other than Xylia.

Roxas stood up straight, turning toward the stage and watching as the opening to the song seemed over. Eryx began to sing, his voice being much more clear than one would've imagined.

_A darkness inside me surrounds_

_Letting in no light or sounds_

_This place I can't escape from_

_Cementing me so I can't run._

_I struggle and fight for freedom_

_But daylight just will not come_

_My chance is looking slimmer_

_My life is looking dimmer_

_And just as I'm about to give up_

_Something brings my weary head up_

_Your hand on my chin warms me_

_A light now shines before me_

_Your smile guides me toward the light_

_I can finally see_

_The light comes from you, shining bright_

_It pours down onto me_

_I'm taken from this endless night_

_I finally grow my wings_

_I jump into my first free flight_

_And I don't care if time flies by me now…_

_I'm free…_

_But now that I'm set into the world_

_I find it hard to steady myself_

_I need your help to get me_

_Walking on my own two feet again_

_And just as I'm about to give up_

_Something brings my weary head up_

_Your hand on my chin warms me_

_A light now shines before me_

_Your smile guides me toward the light_

_I can finally see_

_The light comes from you, shining bright_

_It pours down onto me_

_I'm taken from this endless night_

_I can spread my wings_

_I start my long-awaited flight_

_And I don't care if time flies by me now…_

_I'm free…_

_I'm free…_

A little bit of music followed before the ending, the instruments slowly fading into silence. Nothing was heard in the room, not even breathing from the crowd that seemed to have grown while the lights were off. Now, Sora and Riku had appeared, bearing friends in large amounts from several worlds. It took one of those friends to begin the wave of applause.

Amongst the cheers, Roxas noticed a figure he didn't recognize. It was female, that he could make out by the shape of her black-cloaked body. She had something near her—a wolf-like animal, it seemed. But this was odd. Who was this? A smile curled onto her visage, and suddenly the animal was gone.

Roxas jumped, grabbing Axel's arm and causing the redhead to turn around and face him. Roxas looked pleadingly up at him. "Axel, who is that?" He asked, pointing to the girl—or at least where she was.

Axel gained a confused look on his face. "What're you talking about…? There's no one over there." Roxas turned to see that indeed, there was no one. He was beginning to wonder if he'd imagined it when the lights went out once again. Several girls in the now-large crowd screamed, and among them the blond picked out Demyx. This wasn't a trick of his.

The lights began to flicker, giving a sort of strobe-light affect to the auditorium. In the chaos that had taken over the room, Roxas spotted something odd. One of the lights above the stage was loose, dangling over the well-known musician of the Organization. The blond jumped forward, Axel dumbfounded by the sudden jerky movement of his friend, through the people just as the light began to come down.

Xylia turned to Demyx, noticing that Roxas was jumping toward him. She screamed instinctively, causing the sandy-haired boy to look up. His eyes widened, and he was frozen to the spot. The light went down, snagging on the wires and bouncing back up for a moment. This gave Roxas just enough time to take a dive at the musician and tackle him out of the way. The fixture crashed into the stage, shattering and sparking everywhere.

This apparently caused a surge, all of the lighting going out completely. There was panic and chaos in the crowd, and no one could see what was going on. Axel decided to fix this. He jumped up onto the table with the punch and snacks; surprised they were still okay after all the pushing and shoving in the crowd. He summoned his chakrams, setting flame to them. He held him arms in the air, letting the light from the fire shine throughout the room.

The light gave Eryx enough sight to use his wire without hurting anyone. It zigzagged through the air over the peoples' heads, creating a string of light over everyone. It worked efficiently enough, and soon there were people on stage and in the crowd running about frantically. Demyx was helped up by Maxwell, who brushed him off and checked to make sure he was okay. Xylia joined him, looking over the scrapes from the fall.

At the first chance he could, Axel put his weapons away and darted on-stage. His best friend had just nearly killed himself trying to save the hydromaniac, and suddenly he didn't know what he was doing anymore. He dropped to his knees, sliding to a halt next to the blond who was rubbing his knee. The wide-eyed redhead closely examined the knee and several other places while he freaked out. "Roxas, are you okay?! Are you injured?! You aren't hurt, are you?!" He moved the younger boy's hand off of the wound on his knee. "You're hurt. Can you stand? Roxas, what were you thinking?!" He took a breath to continue, but Roxas hushed him.

He looked at him for a moment to tell him it was his own turn to talk. "… Yes, I don't think so, not really, I don't know, and… I wasn't." Axel sighed, looking down and shaking his head. He reached an arm over, leaning to the side of Roxas and wrapping that arm around his shoulder. "What… Axel?"

Axel smirked. "Don't scare me like that…"

Roxas sighed, blushing slightly. "O-okay… I'm sorry…"

Axel got up, ending the embrace he'd started and reaching a hand out to his friend. Roxas grabbed it, pulling himself up halfway before a pain in his ankle shot up through his leg and caused him to fall on his knees. Axel caught him, a worried look coming over his face instantly. He hefted the boy up, putting an arm behind his knees, and the other around his back. "You're not okay… C'mon, we'll get you fixed up. You can't walk on that, so don't complain about my carrying you." The blond nodded in response.

As everyone ran about the room, picking up fallen chairs and tables, fixing up things, exiting and entering the room to tend to anyone who was injured in the chaos, time seemed to freeze for Roxas as he caught sight of the woman with her beast. He nudged Axel, who looked at his friend with a confused look on his face as he felt the boy tighten up. He followed his gaze to the woman, eyes widening as he stared.

She watched them too, waiting for a moment and grinning a sinister-looking grin. The boys couldn't take their eyes off of her, and didn't until she vanished as someone walked in front of them.

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-In Roxas's Room-

Axel pushed the door to the blonde's room and walked in. He set Roxas down on his bed and stepped back, glancing around. Roxas answered his silent question. "In the dresser, bottom drawer."

The redhead went to the wooden dresser and kneeled down, pulling out the bottom drawer by the brass handles. He peered inside, catching sight of a first-aid kit. He reached for it, pulling it out and setting it on the bed. He unlatched it, lifting the lid and looking about inside for a wrap. He caught sight of the light-brown material and snatched it from the kit, walking over to his friend and lifting his foot tenderly.

Roxas winced, hissing at the pain a little. Axel stopped for a moment, lifting a hand up to lightly touch his fingertips to the blonde's cheek. "I'm sorry if I hurt you..." He moved back to the ankle, moving it a bit more to get it a good angle. He unraveled the wrap, moving it to fit around his foot and ankle. Once it was on tightly enough, he put the clip on the end to hold it in place.

Ocean-blue eyes watched the redhead distantly, spacing out as he subconsciously asked. "Who was that out there…?" Axel looked up at him and sighed.

"I'm not sure, Roxas… But whoever it was… I'm pretty sure she's the cause of that accident," He replied, barely bringing Roxas any closer to reality.

"I know she is… I saw her before it happened, but she disappeared before I could show you…"

Axel finished treating the sprain as best he could, and then sat up on the bed next to Roxas. "Hn… We should warn the others soon…. After all, we can't have anybody else hurt, right?"

He nodded, still spacing out. Axel spoke up again. "Roxas. If anything happens to you again… I'm going after her myself." And with that, he got up and walked through the exit of the room.

Roxas could only wonder… What was going to happen to him? To Axel? To everyone else? He didn't have the answers to those questions, and he could only hope that somewhere along their days to come, he'd find them.

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**Well, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Chapter 4 should be out sometimes soon. I just may get to work on it faster than this one… I hope to get more reviews next time, when our well-known characters get start getting into a heap of trouble! A rebirth will occur, a journey will begin, and a love will begin to appear.**

**Seeya next time!**

**Melodious Nocturne Stalker**


	4. The Woods

Nice to see you all again. Thanks for the review(s), guys. But, with the lack of them, I have to wonder if people are even reading this besides Bit and the Hobo…? -Sigh- Ah, well. I'll get over it. After all, there's a story to continue!!

**Sorry for the delays getting this out. D; My KH inspiration died.**

**Have fun with Chapter 4!**

**I wanna give out a special thanks to my best friends for giving me the inspiration to continue this after kinda… losing it. Thanks, guys.**

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_What to do, what to do?_

Roxas asked himself this several times as he sat at the edge of his bed the next morning, looking at his foot. He wanted to get up and move, but he knew a certain redhead'd maul him if he were caught.

_Well then, I guess I'll just have to avoid him…_

The blond made sure no one was nearby by limping over to the door and peeking outside before he opened a portal to walk through. The end of the portal appeared at the training grounds that had been recently built. He hadn't gotten a good chance to get a feel for the place, and there was a bit of it covered in woods he hadn't been in. He decided to start there.

He knew he shouldn't have been walking around on that foot, but what did it matter? After all, if the only thing he could feel was pain, he might as well let it sink in. [AN: Lawl, Roxas is a masochist. XD; And so, he continued to limp over into the woods, stepping lightly over logs and streams. It didn't look like these woods would go for very long, but apparently the training grounds were a lot bigger than he had thought… On the other hand, maybe this was actually an illusion trap that had been set specifically for training.

Any normal person would have been intelligent enough to pay attention to where they were going, especially being injured, but Roxas was too busy thinking about how to get out of the illusion that he lost himself within it. Oh, what a smart boy he was today.

A quick scan of his surroundings gave him the mental OK to start moving again. He would eventually get out, right?

Wrong.

After what seemed like forever, he stopped walking to catch his breath. He leaned up against the nearest tree, sinking down to sit on the soft grass. He found it so strange to find such small amounts of weeds and dead leaves about. He figured there should be more, but he also knew that with the place's recently being built, the grass had not yet had the time to turn to underbrush.

The blond was starting to wonder when he would get out of the woods when he felt something underneath him. A vibration that slowly increased in intensity, to be exact. Something was coming his way, and it would probably have been a good idea to run. Therefore, he did. He jumped up, only hurting his ankle more, and started to move. He had no idea what was big enough to make the place vibrate, or what could have possibly been out there. Nevertheless, he knew it was more than likely dangerous, so he made sure not to slow down.

His injury was really beginning to bug him, and it didn't help that he twisted it on a random patch of thick weeds he just happened to be running through, which sent him down to the ground. Or, at least, what would have been the ground if it hadn't been a hole. He shrieked, a sound apparently loud enough to stop whatever it was that was following him, but not enough to stop him from plummeting about twenty feet down into the trap. He hit the bottom, and then blanked out.

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Roxas regained consciousness to find himself in a familiar room, though he wasn't sure why. Upon closer inspection, he identified his surroundings as Axel's room. Not that this was a bad thing… Or… was it? He gasped, realizing that if he was in Axels' room after what had happened, he'd been found. Moreover, if he had been found… Well, he was in trouble now.

Boy was he smart today!

The furious redhead burst into the room at the slight sound of his bed creaking, the attempting-to-escape Roxas freezing in his movements. "What… What the hell were you thinking, Roxas?!" He started, the blond-haired boy flinching.

"I-I'm sorry, Axel, I didn't think—"

"Damn fuckin' straight you didn't think. You scared the living shit outta me! I come to check on you, you aren't in your room, and when I go looking for you, I hear you scream and have to go track the earsplitting noise into the woods to find you passed out in a hole. What in fucking hell were you doing out there?!"

Roxas slipped back under he covers he had been pulling off, pulling them over his head and murmuring, which forced Axel to come closer to him to hear. "I'm sorry… I just couldn't stand sitting around, and you hadn't come out yet, so I just… left. I didn't think I'd end up KO'd in a pit in the middle of the woods."

Axel could tell his voice was that of someone upset and scared, so his own tone turned to one that was a little less angry. He pulled the blanket off his head to see that he had buried his face in the pillow. He ran his fingers through the blonde-haired boy's hair and sighed, defeated. "… Just… don't scare me like that again. If you had really wanted to get up and go, I would have gone with you… So just tell me next time, alright?" Roxas nodded, turning his head to smile at him.

As far as Roxas was concerned, Axel had feelings. He could be frightened, worried, angry…. Actually, when he thought about it, his own fear was as close to real as it could get. Perhaps Axel was right… Maybe they couldn't really take away their feelings. Because he knew he was feeling something….

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Later that day, Roxas was feeling a little better, and was able to walk around carefully… With Axel trailing less than two feet behind him at all times, at least. He managed to get to the training grounds again, before almost falling over and having protective hands wrap around his stomach and waist and pull him back up. Roxas felt his face flush, and turned his head to see a sweatdropping Axel.

"Ugh… Roxas, be more careful…." He scolded, releasing him and putting a hand on top of his head. "Now, why was it you suddenly wanted to come here…?"

Roxas blinked, and then smiled. "Oh, that's right! When I fell, I was being chased by something… I have no idea what it was, but it was big. I screamed, and that seemed to stop it… But I never got to see it, since I ran when the entire place started vibrating…" He tried to explain, but Axel seemed to think he was crazy.

"Eh… Are you sure…? It's sounds a bit farfetched to me…" He said, an eyebrow cocked.

"I swear… Axel, it's true," He protested.

The older boy just shook his head. "Alright… Alright, let's see if we can find this thing."

Roxas nodded, pointing toward the forest. "I got lost in there, then felt it coming toward me, so I ran…."

Axel quirked a brow again, looking at Roxas as if he had just called the grass purple. "Wait, you… got lost in there? There's not even enough forest to get lost in…."

Roxas stared up at him. "… I was… I thought it was an illusion…" He stated, gaining another strange look.

"… Roxas, I think you were delirious…"

"Damnit, no. I wasn't. I swear I was lost."

"Fine, fine… Come on, let's just go."

To Roxas' distress, they moved around in the small amount of forest, making him frustrated when they found nothing, and didn't get lost. The blond leaned against a tree and sighed. "I knew it… This is just ending up to be a normal forest… Now I look like an idiot! But, I swear, I was lost! I know I was…"

Axel sighed, putting a hand on Roxas' head. "It's alright…" He murmured. "I believe you… I mean… I guess it's possible, after the other night…"

Roxas suddenly perked up. "… It… It must have been her!" He exclaimed.

Axel paused, looking down in thought. Perhaps he was right. After all, since the newbies had arrived, everything seemed to have been out of place. Maybe this was just another of her tricks…? Whatever the case, what did she want with them…? Moreover, who was she?

The redhead opened his mouth to say something, cut off by a sudden vibration. The two nearly lost balance, Roxas falling to the side. Axel grabbed his shoulders to keep him up, moving close to him and latching onto the tree to stabilize them. He held them there until the vibrations stopped.

"Shit, what was that?!" The older teen snapped, looking around to see that they weren't near the edge of the woods anymore.

"…. Wait. Where are we….?"

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**OHNOES. What will become of them?! Find out later. xD;;;**

**Review, please. For the sake of my poor self esteem. D:**

**And, P.S. I know that this chapter's kinda… off. I'll revise it later, but… In the amount of time I wasn't writing this, I was RPing **_**constantly **_**and getting **_**so**_** much better. :3 Only the last bit of it was recent…. Don't hurt me. I'll be better now, and I might just make a one-shot or something.**

**Oh, yeah. And, Maxwell and Phoenix are nicknames for them, not their real Nobody names. I probably should have put that in before. Eryx's name was Rey, Xylia's Yali, and Xanthus' was Nathus.**

**The Melodious Nocturne Stalker**


	5. Clocks

**Hello, peoples. The moment I was officially finished with the last chapter, I started this, since I couldn't upload chapter 4 right away thanks to crappy internet. :D As a log, it's 10:15 PM EST, Thursday, July 26, 2007 at this moment. :3**

**My disclaimer still stands, guys. I do ****not**__**own KH, but I do own my original characters, Eryx, Xylia, Phoenix, Maxwell, and Xanthus… and the mysterious chick. I also own this crappy plotline.**

**My rating still stands as well, for graphic violence and language.**

**Please, Read and Review, and have fun. :3**

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"… Oh, shit…" Roxas spat, holding onto Axel's arms for support. The tremor had nearly knocked the two of them down, but the redhead had managed to grab onto the tree and keep them up.

At the angry words, Axel pushed off the tree and helped the younger blond to get his balance. Once Roxas was stable, he looked around, walking a few feet in every direction, before coming back to the blond. "…. We're trapped, Rox…" He muttered. "You can't see through those trees, and I doubt we'll be able to make it out our own."

Roxas didn't look surprised. "… Yeah. I figured that much," He grumbled, looking away, feeling a bit sore that he had to be stuck like this to prove a point. He knew Axel had said that he believed him, but he also knew he had his doubts, which would easily overpower his so-called 'belief' in his friend.

Well, that doubt had been blown right outta the water, hadn't it?

Axel gave him a look, slightly taken by surprise at the annoyed tone. "Hey, don't get too worked up over this. We'll get out…." He attempted to reason cautiously.

Then it hit Roxas… Try using a portal. He called on the darkness, which appeared around him, swallowing him up to take him to his room, but only managing to spit him out a couple feet away. So, they could warp within the forest… But, not anywhere out of it… Great.

"… Well, this is just fucking perfect, isn't it?" He growled, limping slightly over to a tree to lean against it, closing his eyes as his frustration simmered.

Axel tried to calm him down, sensing the mental discomfort. "… Roxas, it's okay. It just wore off last time, am I right? When I came to get you, the forest was normal… Maybe we just have to wait."

As if on cue, the ground began to shake again. Axel stumbled trying to get to Roxas, who immediately fell backwards. This time, he wasn't so lucky as to be caught. The blond boy hit the ground harshly, yelping out in pain. The quake was much worse than before… The tree Roxas had been leaning against began to tip, uproot, and fall toward the boy.

Axel gained his balance as best his could, just as the tree's shadow towered over Roxas. The younger boy's eyes were wide with shock and what looked so obviously to be fear. The redhead lunged forward, covering Roxas and letting the tree his back. He didn't let himself cry out in pain, but he was sure he heard a crack that wasn't the tree.

Luckily, the tree wasn't that big… Axel could have easily put his arms around it, but that was still big enough, at it's height, to come down hard and hurt.

Roxas breathed shakily as Axel knocked the tree off himself, wincing as he felt a wave of pain explode from his side. A rib or two had most likely been cracked. He tried to move again, to reach out and touch Roxas' cheek… However, another striking pain went through him, and he made a slight noise, along with tensing and shaking.

Wide-eyed Roxas reached out to touch Axel's shoulder. "…. A-Axel…?" He said, scared half to death. So scared, in fact, that he hadn't noticed that they were back at the edge of the forest again, the illusion trap being gone.

At the touch, Axel tried to get up, only managing to get about a foot away from Roxas before the pain became unbearable. He cried out, grabbing his side, yelping, then falling over to hit the ground. Roxas quickly made it to his side, but found that Axel had passed out from the immense pain…

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Axel awoke, to his surprise, in his bed. The covers were up most of the way, and as his slender hand pushed them away, he found that his coat was nowhere to be found, and his upper body had been treated with medical wrap. He looked at himself, dumbfounded. "… How… the hell…?" He muttered, gaining the attention of the blond on a stepladder at his wall with a hammer in his hand and a few bent nails in his mouth.

Innocent blue eyes glanced at him, seeming to suddenly brighten up from their curious state to an excited one. He jumped down, setting the tool and nails down on the side table next to Axel's bed. He seemed to want to say something, but didn't, couldn't…

The redhead smiled at him. "… Hey…" He started, being cut off by the blond throwing himself at him, latching onto him, arms around his neck and being careful not to hurt him. Axel felt his cheeks flush. "… Er, Roxas?"

The boy didn't answer, but let him go after a moment. He took a deep breath, then went to the foot of his bed. "… Thanks… for saving me. I'm glad you're okay…." He sounded hesitant as the words left his mouth. He pretended he hadn't done or said anything, and reached down to grab something from the floor. This caught Axel's attention.

"… Yeah… Ah, hey, what's that?" He asked as Roxas mounted it on the wall. He was silent, but this turned out to be his answer as a quiet ticking was heard throughout the room. The younger teen grinned at him, and Axel tilted his head to the side, smiling a bit. "… A wall clock…" He stated, answering his own question as Roxas sat on the bed.

"Uh-huh. I remember you saying something about it bothering you that there wasn't any noise in here… So, if figured it'd be a nice thing to do to get you a wall clock. That way there'll always be a small noise in here, even when you just wake up."

Axel smirked, but didn't say anything. Instead, he glanced at the clock at his bedside, the digital one. He grasped it by the cord, yanking it out of the socket and throwing it across the room. It hit the wall, breaking, then the pieces fell into the trashcan below them. Roxas winced, but laughed a bit afterwards, understanding to an extent what this meant.

For Axel, destruction of that clock meant that the soulless silence would be gone for good, and that a new chapter of his life was starting. He could finally wake up from the darkness of his past, and look forward to the light in his future.

A light… That was a rare find in this god-forsaken place. Everyone knew that. The place was made on darkness, but that didn't mean that it was all there was, did it? Axel knew this. Roxas knew this.

Everyone seemed to be stuck in the lifeless dark, swallowed up by the pain and misery of the roles they honestly believed they were forced to play in the performance they all called their 'destiny'. However, that wasn't really what they were meant to do. They were meant to find a way to live with what they had, and without what they had lost.

Nevertheless, why was it so easy for Axel and Roxas to see this truth in the web of lies Xemnas had trapped them in, that was easy to answer, for anyone who had observed them over the time they'd known one another. They had hope. They had dreams.

They had each other.

And as they sat there, thoughts connecting and flowing as one as their eyes met, something clicked in their heads, in time with the tick of the clock as the hands aligned over the twelve to symbolize the time of noon. They were realizing this small, powerful fact for the very first time.

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For the next few days, Axel awoke to the sound of the clock perched on his wall, the round disk sending waves of comfort through him with each tick of a second. This was sound. This was energy. This was life.

Roxas came every day for about two weeks to hang out with him, his own foot being fine enough to walk on after a week. He brought him food and an update on how the training was going without him. He had a few bruises from Eryx and Xylia getting better, though Xanthus seemed to be goofing off through most of the training and Maxwell calmly defeated his targets when they weren't his teacher. Roxas hadn't even attempted to spar with Phoenix.

With this time together, the two seemed to grow even closer than they had been before. Roxas began to wonder if this was what it was like for Sora, Riku, and Kairi back on the islands, growing up together. He figured it must have been. But, Sora and Riku, from what he'd seen of them, had grown a bit… closer. He got embarrassed every time he thought about whether or not that could happen to he and Axel.

But, with the way things were going, that wasn't such a bad thing.

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Overlooking the castle, a shaded figure watched the serene darkness from the edge of the training ground, a light tune flowing from them as their lips moved to shape words to the melody.

"_And we're all pawns in this game of life,_

_Protecting our kings, our hopes, our dreams._

_We scramble to save our crumbling castles,_

_And watch as our minds fall into the streams._

_Reach out to grasp the remains of those thoughts,_

_But don't hold on, let them drown._

_Let go of those misguiding hopes and dreams,_

_Let all your defenses fall down._

_Look up, my dolls, to the dark-shrouded skies,_

_Let it swallow you up my dears,_

_Release the light and surrender your hearts,_

_Give up your love, hate, and fears._

_And now I will lead you to safety, to home,_

_To a place with truthful lies._

_As emptied of life as your soulless shells,_

_Where you, my puppet… dies."_

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**Wtf. You guys are all lucky. XD I finished this the same night—er… well, the next morning. But, yeah. It's been two and a half hours since I finished Chapter 4, and I'm already done with this. But, with good reason. This is going to have been the easiest chapter to write… Don't get too used to the fluff. It won't last longer than it has…. BWAHAHAHAHA.**

**Review, please. :3**

**The next chapter will come soon, I PROMISE.**

**The Melodious Nocturne Stalker**


	6. Hollow Conflict

**Omg, guys. I love you all. xD I've got some people wanting to read this now?! YAY. 3 This makes me really happy. XDDD And now I HAVE to write more often. Woot!!**

**Okay. Disclaimer still stands.**

**UPDATE: WOW, I suck. xDDDDDDD; I totally lost my inspiration for this… BUT. I'M BAAAAAACK! Let's hope it stays that way.**

**Let's skip all the chitchat that I haven't done yet, and get onto the story.**

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Shouts were heard off in the distance as slow footsteps crunched the grass and twigs in a rhythmic pattern. As the figure approached those shouts, they died down, and the group looked up to see their long-lost instructor. All bodies paused in movement, and weapons began to disappear. Everyone stood, now, in a more relaxed position, eyes fixed on the person standing in front of them.

As the wire retracted into the silver ring, Eryx put his hands on his hips. "… Well, wha'dya know... The Might number VIII has surfaced. How was the three weeks of bed rest?" He asked, tilting his head to the side and grinning at him. Axel moved up to him and put his hand on his head.

Roxas snickered at the sight as Axel looked down at him with his own grin. Eryx's faded. "… You two may have the same snarky attitude, but Axel's still taller."

"And anorexic. Don't forget anorexic," Xanthus added in, an eyebrow rose. The grass at his feet ignited, and he started to hop around, trying to get away from it, though it seemed to follow him everywhere.

Xylia laughed a bit at this, and Eryx would have had he not been locked in a staring contest with his instructor. After a moment, Axel lifted his hand from the top of the boy's head, and flicked him between the eyes. Eryx blinked, and the redhead grinned. "…. Heheh… I win."

Eryx gasped, then growled. "You cheated!! Jerk!" He shouted at his back, seeing as Axel had moved to walk up to Roxas.

The blond looked up at him, tilting his head. Axel was staring at him… in an odd way. "… What…? What's with that look?" He brought his head down close, and Roxas blushed. "Wh… what?!"

Emerald eyes blinked at him, and Axel moved away. "You're shorter than I remember…"

Roxas looked dumbfounded. "I'm what…? Okay, that's so not true." He followed after him, Xanthus and Eryx snickering at the two. "What makes you say that?!"

"You just are," He said, stretching a bit.

Roxas stopped. "…. I'm not shorter… You just haven't stood up in three weeks. You forgot!!" He protested, reluctant to believe anything like that.

Axel waved his hand a bit. "Eh, ignore it. Let's get on with the lesson!"

Roxas paused, then reached out and grabbed Axel's wrist. "Ooooh, no you don't. You aren't doing _anything_ in your condition. You're supposed to go five weeks before doing anything remotely close to this. You're lucky I'm not forcing you to stay in bed right now!"

Axel waved him off. "I'm fine, I'm fine," He said, pulling his arm away. "I'll be alright. Just because they can leave bruises on you doesn't mean they've improved enough to leave a single mark on me."

Roxas paused, staring at him. He hadn't just said that… "… Where do you get off, Axel? You haven't been around!"

Axel grinned at him. "That's because I was too busy recovering from saving you."

The blonde's eyes widened and he looked down. "… I'm… I'm sorry…"

The older teen sighed, shaking his head. "You idiot…" He walked over to him. "I didn't say it was your fault. It's the same both ways. You should be keeping me in bed right now, and I should have kept you there instead of letting you run around and get us into trouble."

Roxas grabbed his arm again. "Then go back to bed before someone _else_ gets hurt."

Eryx cut in. "Hey. If we manage to land one hit on you, will you go? It bugs us to see you two acting like a married couple." The two of them stared at the teen, then flushed. Roxas let go of him.

Axel cleared his throat. "Ah… Yeah, fine." He didn't really want Roxas to continue to be upset with him… "One of you lands a hit, I'll go back."

Just then, there was a sudden pain in his arm. He looked down, and it had been covered in a mauve-colored smoke. He stared at it, wide-eyed. "Wha… What just--?" He couldn't voice his confusion at that point in time, too dumbfounded to do anything. Where had that come from…?!

Phoenix stood several feet away, his hand stretched out toward Axel, covered in the same smoke-like substance. "… Go…" He said.

Everyone started to crack up, save for Phoenix, Roxas, and Axel. The redhead blinked a bit. "What just happened…?" He asked, looking to Roxas, who was starting to snicker a bit.

"You just got hit. Go to bed."

"But I…"

"Axel, go."

"… No," He said, crossing his arms and looking down at him.

Roxas raised an eyebrow at him. He was silent for a moment, his stare piercing through Axel as if his eyes were lasers. He reached out, grabbed his arm, and enveloped the both of them in darkness, sending them to his room.

The moment they were standing to the side of the pyre's bed, the blond shoved his friend. He yelped a bit, falling backward and landing on his bed, which was a good thing—it didn't hurt. He leaned up, glaring at him. "What was that for?"

Roxas crossed his arms. "You're staying in bed—you said you'd go back if you got hit, and Phoenix hit you." He tried to sit back up, and Roxas pushed on his chest, pinning him to the bed. "Stay. Put," He said, sounding sterner as he became annoyed with the redhead's stubbornness.

Axel didn't seem to like his tone, and reacted badly. "Why should I? I'm fine enough to walk around, so stop babying me."

Roxas glared at him. "I'm doing this because I'm _worried_ about you, dammit. I don't want you hurt any more than you already are."

"Did you forget again? The reason I'm in bed, hurt, in the first place is because you were too stubborn to stay where I put you, so why should I do the same for you?" He spat. Emerald eyes widened as a sharp pain became apparent on his cheek. Roxas had back-handed him….

"… What's your problem? Two minutes ago, you told me it wasn't my fault, and now you're blaming me? I know I'm the one at fault here, alright?! It was my stupidity that got my ankle hurt—that got your ribs cracked! I'm sorry, okay?! I thought I might be making up for it, staying by your side, making you feel better… I guess not."

The blond moved, and Axel reached out to grab his wrist. Roxas paused, and then jerked his hand free, walking out the door and slamming it behind him. The redhead winced.

**-------------------------------------------**

Hours passed…

Roxas sat on his bed, drowning in the thoughts that clouded his mind and poured a depression over him that he often had wondered was possible. He closed his eyes, pale lids collapsing over ocean blue. He pondered, had he hurt Axel with those thoughts…? If he had, good—no, that wasn't what he wanted… He deserved to be hurt after what he said—that wasn't true… They'd both been upset, they were angry with each other, and because of that they had failed to see the reasoning behind the other's actions.

This wasn't what he wanted to do… He hadn't really meant to hurt him. The only thing he could think to do was go and apologize… How hard was that going to be? The hardest things to say in life, he'd always thought, were 'Help me', 'I'm sorry', and 'I love you'. But, he knew he had to say it. An awkward healing would only lead to a rift created between them, and after how happy they'd been he didn't want to do that.

He lifted himself from his bed, and moved to his door, smiling a bit. He'd apologize… and everything would be alright.

When he opened the door, something tackled him to the ground. When he caught a glimpse of it, it was a large white wolf. Its ears were pinned back, and its teeth were bared, a low snarling growl emitting from it. The boy couldn't move—he was too afraid.

The figure, cloaked in black, moved into the room. From the slit in the middle of the fabric came a black lace-gloved hand, pale skin beneath it connecting with the arm that followed. The rough fabric touched his cheek, and he trembled at its cold touch. He stared up at black-colored lips, which curled into a smile as the wolf backed off. The hand retracted, and pulled back the hood.

Waved hair moved to her mid-back, wine red in color. Her eyes were a striking yellow, and beneath the cloak she wore much black laced clothing. She reached down and grabbed his arm, pulling him to stand. She leaned in, whispering into his ear.

"My doll… My puppet… It is time to perform…" She said, voice very precise, and laden with an accent Roxas couldn't quite place. She began to pull him toward a cloud of swirling dark grey smoke, and he tried to get away. She covered his mouth, and pulled him into it, the boy only getting one word out.

**-------------------------------------------**

Axel sat up in his bed, snapping out of his dreaming state as he began staring toward the door.

He could have sworn he'd heard Roxas calling for him…

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**DUNDUNDUN.**

**Yeah, the chapter's finally done. xD;**

**Review please, and we might just get a chapter out faster. Reviews maketh me happy.**

**Till then, be good, and have fun!**

**Melodious Nocturne Stalker**


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